St. Patrick's Old Cathedral, Minor basilica in Nolita, Manhattan, United States.
St. Patrick's Old Cathedral is a Gothic Revival church of rough grey stone with tan trim, designed by Joseph-François Mangin and built from 1809 to 1815. Its gabled facade holds two tall pointed-arch windows with tracery above a red double door reached by steps, a small round window near the apex, and a square tower with louvered openings behind the roofline. The side wall has four tall pointed-arch recesses, two glazed and two blind, and a small gabled porch with a red door. The interior measures 120 by 80 feet with an 85-foot vault.
Built between 1809 and 1815, this cathedral served as the original seat of the New York Archdiocese until a devastating fire in 1866 led to extensive reconstruction.
The cathedral gained international recognition as a filming location for several scenes in The Godfather trilogy, particularly the famous baptism sequence in the first film.
Open Monday through Saturday from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM and Sundays until 8:00 PM, with free admission and multiple daily masses celebrated in English, Spanish, and Chinese.
The church stands on ground that served as St. Peter's cemetery before construction began; the cornerstone was laid on June 8, 1809. In 1836, during anti-Catholic riots, loopholes were cut into the newly built outer walls and the building was defended with muskets. The Ancient Order of Hibernians then set up its headquarters across the street.
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